OCHO RIOS, St Ann — Public school teachers are expected to get a part of the retroactive money owed to them by the Government at the end of May and a second payment in July.

It is still not clear, however, how much of the $8 billion owed to the more than 20,000 public teachers will be paid as the cash-strapped Government has budgeted only $2 billion in retroactive money to pay all Government workers during the 2010/11 fiscal year. Other retroactive payments, the Government has said, will be made over a medium term of four years, under the agreement with the International Monetary Fund.

“The commitment to pay still stands, the issue is when, how much and how,” Education Minister Andrew Holness told a special Jamaica Teachers’ Association (JTA) conference at the Sunset Jamaica Grande Hotel here yesterday.

Said Holness: “There is, identified within the budget, a pool of funds that will be used to meet the entire public sector wage bill; the challenge the Government faces is how to allocate the pool between all the competing public sector parties that are involved.”

Holness told the conference that the Government intended to fulfil its commitment to the teachers. At the same time, he asked them to be more reasonable and considerate in their demands, particularly since the Government has to deal with the demands of other public sector groups.

“We are all in one boat and if the boat gets rock too hard it could capsize; we are all in this boat together and whether or not we recognise it, the nature of the game has changed,” the education minister said.

The JTA had accused the Government of being tardy in its approach to an agreement which was made for $8 billion in retroactive monies owed to its members to be paid in four instalments, beginning next month.

But yesterday, president Michael Stewart welcomed the minister’s announcement, although it was not clear how much money the teachers were expected to receive.

“He has brought some hope to the teachers of Jamaica and the fact that he said some payment will be made, notwithstanding the amount of money to be paid…,” Stewart told the Observer.

“…The payment has been outstanding for such a long time and we are really hopeful that some closure will be brought to this payment,” added Stewart.

He said the JTA had reached an agreement with Government in September last year to pay the outstanding $8 billion owed to the teachers in four instalments:

* $2 billion in May 2010;

* $2 billion in July 2010;

* $2.5 billion in June 2011; and

* $1.5 billion in April 2012.

The JTA, said Stewart, was awaiting a formal response from the Cabinet which was expected to address the matter yesterday.

“We will be calling a special conference of the JTA’s delegates to decide whether to accept the Government’s payment offer,” Stewart said.

The JTA head said a number of payment plans had been made before, only for the administration to renege on the agreements.

“Our teachers have lost significantly in terms of inflation and the devaluation of the amounts owing, that’s why we are losing faith and the credibility factor comes into question,” Stewart said.

— Additional reporting by Luke Dougla